Relationship between Foot Length Measurements and Body Height: A Prospective Regional Study among Adolescents in Eastern Region of Kosovo

Abstract

The purpose of this research is to examine standing height in both Kosovan genders in the Eastern Region as well as its association with foot length, as an alternative to estimating standing height. A total of 364 individuals (185 male and 179 female) participated in this research. The anthropometric measurements were taken according to the protocol of ISAK. The relationships between body height and foot length were determined using simple correlation coefficients at a ninety-five percent confidence interval. A comparison of means of standing height and foot length between genders was performed using a t-test. After that a linear regression analysis were carried out to examine extent to which foot length can reliably predict standing height. Results displayed that Eastern Kosovan male are 178.79±6.07 cm tall and have a foot length of 26.03±1.21 cm, while Eastern Kosovan female are 164.60±4.72 cm tall and have a foot length of 23.38±0.94 cm. The results have shown that both genders made Eastern-Kosovans a tall group, but a little bit shorter than general Kosovan population. Moreover, the foot length reliably predicts standing height in both genders; but, not reliably enough as arm span. This study also confirms the necessity for developing separate height models for each region in Kosovo as the results from Eastern-Kosovans don’t correspond to the general values.

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